Aesthetically speaking, Trey Stone shares the same build and hair color as the man he pays tribute to. During performances, he wears the little round sunglasses most people associate with the “Don’t Come Around Here No More” music video, making Stone look a bit like the Mad Hatter — minus the hat. There is also, typically, a velvety jacket and a scarf thrown in to complete the wardrobe. The Fender Telecaster helps, too.
Stone says the sunglasses let the wearer hide a little of what’s happening on stage — their view of the world stays protected. Whether that’s for the performer’s benefit or the audience’s is a moot point. The result, whether Stone realizes it or not, is that he looks more like Tom Petty with them on.
“It’s hard not to call us a Tom Petty tribute band, because all we do is Tom Petty,” Stone said. “We really try to make what we do sound pretty close to what everybody’s used to hearing, but what we’re really trying to do is just put on a great rock ‘n’ roll show. Thankfully, with the list of songs we do, you can’t go wrong. It ends up being a great show.”
The lineup this time around includes Stone, Matt Bourelle, Damien Dennis, Jon Berry, Sam King and Rob Thaxton.
Stone once said that Petty’s music is “all about the excitement of an open E chord. That’s the glory of rock ‘n’ roll distilled.” It sums up Petty’s entire oeuvre in two succinct statements. He’s also gone on record to claim that “Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers are America’s greatest rock ‘n’ roll band.”
Though Tom Petty proudly hailed from Gainesville, Fla., he was a Heartland Southern rocker who appeased Midwestern sensibilities even after moving to the West Coast. He was the quintessential American musician. His band has never fit any single regional label, which is why claiming Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers are America’s greatest rock band is a claim this writer won’t dispute.
“That song off ‘Wildflowers,’ ‘You Wreck Me,’ it was an instant Tom Petty classic, as if we’d been listening to it for the past 30 years,” Stone said. “You can hear the garage band even in those well-produced records.”
There’s an immediacy to Petty’s music. Word economy is something Stone admires about the lyricism, how he can say so much with so little. It’s simple music with open chords. It’s not rocket science; it’s rock ‘n’ roll.
“This is a labor of love for us,” Stone said. “We’re not a band that is working all the time. We all have other projects. We just really, truly love this music. We’ve loved it since we were kids, and it’s an honor to get up and play the songs.”
Brandon Berry covers the music and arts scene in Dayton and Southwest Ohio. Reach him at branberry100@gmail.com.
HOW TO GO
What: The Petty Thieves: A Tribute to Tom Petty
When: 8 p.m. March 28
Where: The Brightside, 905 E. 3rd St., Dayton
Cost: $20 advanced / $25 at the door
Tickets: thebrightsidedayton.com
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